Metal polish



Suffolk and State of Massachusetts,

Patented Sept. l 1925.

UNITED STATES 1,551,673- PATENT OFFICE.

uammr, mm, or so's'ron, uessacnusn'r'rs.

um'n. rotten.

mi Drawing.

more particularly to polishes, either liquid.

or paste, for finely finished metals or other smooth and lustroussurfaces.

Metal polishes of usual type dependfor their cleaning and brighteningaction upon character as readily to an abrasive ingredient which removesthe metallic oxides or accumulated dirt and dust by friction, orupon-the emplo m'ent, either with or without an abrasive, o coatingmaterials which are deposited in a thin layer u on the surface to bepolished and which of themselves impart the desired gloss.-

Much labor is required in using polishes of the first t pe, particularlywhen the metal to be po ished ish'eavily oxidized or corroded, While thesecond form of polish is often objectionable as it obscures or dims themetal itself and-is fre uently of such a scratched or marred or rapidlyto gather dust, thus necessitatmg very frequent repetitions of thepolishing process. 1

Principal objects of the present invention are to provide a olish formetals or other highly fimshed sur aces which removes the metallicQxides or other accumulation from the surface by a true chemicalreaction therewithgassisted, if desired, by the action of a fineabrasive but without danger of at tacking the surface itself even ifleft in contact therewith for an indefinite period; to provide a polishwhich will leave the surface clean and without an appreciable coatingafter the operation is completed; to providea, polish whose ingredientswill remain properly mixed and without substantial separation for longperiodsand which may again be mixed by slight agitation if separated byan excessive period of standing; and to rovide a polish of the classdescribed whic contains no inflammable in edients and which does notemit disagreea le fumes.

Statedbriefly,a polish halving the above characteristics ma bevcompounded by suspending a suita le. ulverulent abrasive in anon-inflammable uid forming an' am- Application filed m a,

1928. Serial No. 087.590.

soluble salt such for example as aluminum silicate whlch will, thickenthe mixture or form a jell, may be recipitated in the water with itssuspende particles of abrasive. The aluminum silicate may beprecipitated by adding any suitable aluminum salt to a solution ofsodiumsilicate in the mixture, and acts in place of or as auxiliary tothe soluble soap to prevent ettling or separation ofthe abrasive fromthe liquid vehicle in which it is suspended; L.-

The ammonium soap, or soaps, has a triple function in the compound.First, it acts to thicken it to some extent, thus sup-' plementingthesupporting action of insoluble soap, orjellie 1 salt; second, it breaksdown y evaporation of ammonia when exposedin a thin film-in the air,thus freeing the fatty or other acids from which it is formed, andthird, when employed for p01- ishing-non-metals, in the manner of an ordmary-soap. When the polish is used for bri htening metal, these acidsrecombine wit any metallic oxides or other compounds upon the surface ofthe metal, the resultingmetalhc soaps being readily removable by Theacids which are liberated from the ammonium soap are not strong enoughto attack clean or non-corroded metallicor other-polished surfaces sothat when the sur faces have once been cleaned the chemical reactionceases. 1 4

The abrasive in the compound functions in the. ordinary manner but isparticularly efiective when combined with the ammonium soap as it thenacts mechanicall .to remove the insoluble soaps of the metallic oxidesas they are formed and constantly exposes fresh surfaces to the actionof the acid liberated.

The abrasive which'I prefer to use for making a" polish for metal orsimilar sur.v

faces is finel pulverized silexor commerci-al silicon dioxide (SiOalthough other generally similar characteristics may face are attacked.

be substituted for the silex.

I find that water forms a very satisfac- 'tory fluid vehicle for theother in edients particularly when mixed with an a cohol in varyingpercenta es, such fluid vehicle be.

ing abundant, su stantially neutral in action, and non-inflammable. Icontemplate however, that other liquid vehicles having used, but Iregard it as important that the vehicle selected be substantiallynon-inflammable, although liquids, such as pure aIoo-, hol, not subjectto the rapid emission of inflammable or explosive fumes," may at timesbe employed to advantage.

' Preferably I employ from five to thirt per cent of alcohol (eithermethyl or ethyl with the water for the reason that the alcohol increasesthe rate of evaporation of the 'water and ammonia from the'film ofpolish when applied to a surface, thus facilitating the liberation ofthe fatty acids and increasing the rate at which the metallic oxides orother accumulations upon the sur- The soaps both soluble and insoluble,are preferably formed in the mixture by the action of suitable reagentsu on a fatty acid or acids forming an ingrb ient thereof.

The term fatty acid'as herein employed is not used in its morerestricted chemical sense as including only homologues of formic acid,of which stearic acid is a well known exam le, but as embracing anyother of the acid erlvatives of the fats or fatty' oils, such forexample as oleic acid, commercially known as red oil. I

I prefer to use those fatty acids having a relatively low melting point,as theircompounds with the metals, as well as any unused surplus, maymore easily be removed from the metallic surfaces than when the. fattyacids of higher melting point are employed. However, various mixtures ofthe high and low melting point fatty acids are found-to give excellentresults.

For precipitating the insoluble soap I prefer to use lime asthe reagent,although other salts of calcium, as well as salts of iron, copper, etc.,or mixtures thereof may be employed and give satisfactory results. v

Thepolish may readily be perfumed by In compounding the polish I find itconven-' ient to take about twenty-five gallons of water and add theretoabout nine gallons of commercial oleic acid. With these liquids I mixabout five hundred pounds of finely pulverized silex, pumice or otherselective abrasive, adding the abrasive slowly and with constantstirring. I then add about two and one-half gallons of common aquaammonia (26 degree Baum) while continuing to stir the mixture. Astronger or weaker ammonia may be used, but in such case the amountemployed should be varied accordingly to ensure an excess to free am:monia sufii'cient to combine with all the fatty acid. When the compoundhas attained an even, pasty consistency I addabout twentynine gallons oflime water, continuing to stir the mixture for about fifteen minutesuntil the lime water has been incorporated.

.The lime water should be. added slowly While thoroughly agitating themixture in order to secure even precipitation of the lime soap.

In place of lime water, calcium chloride or other water souble calciumsalt ma used, or in fact any other metallic oxi e or hydroxide or othersalt which will form an insoluble soap with-the fatty acid.

I have contemplated the addition of caustic soda or potash as seeminglydesirable ingredients of thepolish for the reason that 0 these reagentstend to prevent separation of the solid and liquid components of thecompound for an indefinite period, but believe i that the advantagesthus obtainable are more than offset by the tendency of the sodaorpotash soaps to remain upon the surface after the polishing operationhas been completed,

thus dulling the shine on gloss. I therefore prefer to omit suchreagents from my polish, although it is possible that they might befound desirable under some circumstances.

The polish prepared as above described is placed in suitable'bottles,jars or other containers -for sale and use, and although it may be foundupon prolonged standing that the heavier particles tend to some extentto separate from the liquid, a slight shaking or stirring is su-ificientto restore it to its original condition.

The polish is conveniently applied by placing a small quantity, dilutedwith water 1f desired, upon a'cloth or pad and applying it to thesurface to be cleaned with gentle rubbing or friction. Far less labor isrequired to obtain the desired luster or gloss than with polishesdepending entirely u on the action of an abrasive for their e ect,

while finely polished surfaces are less likely to be scratched orinjured.

moved from the surface, the latter is wiped with a soft cloth to removesurplus polish and the products arising from the employment of thepolish, thus leaving the surface With a clean and brilliant luster.W'hen the surface is comparatively smooth and free from pits, rubbingmay be dispensed with entirely, as the surface film is quickly removedby the chemical and physical action of the fatty acids alone.

\Vhile a polish comprising the above noted ingredients in substantiallythe proportions indicated appears to give the best results, Icontemplate changes both in the specific ingredients employed and in theproportions in which they are used as within thescope of my invention.

I claim:

1. A polish comprising finely divided abrasive material having itsparticles surrounded with the ammonium and calcium soaps of oleic acid.

2. A polish comprising water, alcohol, finely divided abrasive material,an insoluble soap, and an ammonium soap.

3. A polish comprising a fluid vehicle consisting of water and alcohol,and a finely divided abrasive suspended therein, the particles of theabrasive being surrounded with calaium and ammonium soaps of a fatty aciSigned by me at Boston, Massachusetts, this 3rd day of May, 1923.

MANUEL LEVIN.

